Third Child Says Attempted Abduction Happened At Local Park

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Students in the Keller Independent School District went to school Friday morning, and went home in the afternoon thinking about safety. And there is no doubt; a lot of parents were thinking the same thing.

Police are now looking into three attempted abductions in far north Fort Worth. The latest incident happened Thursday night near North Tarrant Parkway and Ray White Road. The other two were only a few miles north of the area.

The latest attempted abduction happened at a small, neighborhood park near Meridian and Raymond.

Fort Worth police have stepped up patrols in the area and so has the school district.

You don’t hear children’s voices in the once noisy neighborhood. The little park is usually packed — but Friday it was quiet.

Brad Driggars’ son was one of the children approached. “This is a park for kids, a little neighborhood park and the kids can’t even come out here and play. It’s a sad state of affairs,” he said.

Driggars’ son was at the park when he was approached. Recalling his son’s reaction Driggars said, “He [the suspect] hollered at him to get in the truck… [said] he needed to get in the truck right now.”

The 12-year-old didn’t listen and ran home. “I have some news for this guy, if he comes back over here we are going to deal with him,” Brad Driggars said plainly. The boy later told police and his parents that the man who approached him was in a tan truck.

Police don’t believe what happened at the park is related to two other incidents that occurred just a few miles away. In those cases, students said a suspect approached them in a muddy red-colored pickup.

One of the students sat down with police and drew a picture of a tattoo seen on the suspect’s right shoulder. The child’s drawing appears to show three small crosses inside circles.

Easing fears is what the Keller ISD safety and security team hopes to do now. The district has added extra patrols around schools and neighborhoods.

Kevin Kinley is the director of safety and security with the Keller ISD. “We are working closely with the police department… helping them,” he said. “We are an extra set of eyes to try to pick up a description or try to see if we see that individual lurking in the area.”
Meanwhile, Brad Driggars is thankful for his son’s reaction. “He did exactly what we told him to do — take off and run.”

Joanne Barracca is another concerned parent. “I told my boys, I said, ‘If anyone ever comes up to you, you just run. Just go the other way. Scream. Do what you have to do. Don’t try to fight.’”

Anyone with information about the abductions or persons of interest, in any of the the three cases, is asked to contact Fort Worth police.